Categories: Special / Limited Edition

You have NO idea how badly this “wagon guy” wanted to cover his favorite body style in one of these features, and thanks to Mecum’s Oct. 6-8 sale, I can.

The ratio of sales vs. non-sales on the ten lots offered wasn’t in sellers’ favor—$108,500 vs. $130,500, respectively—but not for a lack of variety. Ranging from a 1926 Ford to a ’79 Mini Clubman—with representatives from nearly every country and time period in between—most everyone could’ve had the five-door of their dreams.

[Except me. But I already have two of them, and that’s enough for now. Or so my wife says. I, on the other hand…]

The high point for Ford’s 4th Generation 1994-2004 Mustang is the 2000 Mustang Cobra “R” model. No fooling around here—the “R” model was not equipped with any luxury options such as air conditioning, stereo, power windows, rear seats, and power door locks. The standard seats were replaced with special Recaro versions which also incorporated a Cobra snake and “R” emblem on the headrest area. The snake/”R” emblem was also used on the reverse indicator letter on the transmission shifter. It almost seems as though Ford didn’t want people to drive the car.

Do you like the small size and updated looks of Land Rover's smallest vehicle ever but find yourself yearning for a little extra power? Land Rover's got you covered. Or at least it might if this new rumor comes true. Land Rover is reportedly working on a "hot" version of the Range Rover Evoque, which would add a high-pressure turbocharger to the 2.0-liter engine for up to around 300 horses of power.

Unlike the Sotheby’s Australian auction I covered a few days ago, Mecum could pretty safely say it had something for just about everyone at its October 6-8 Dallas auction. And in my trilogy of features on the sale, I’m going to try and do the same thing.

First off are six feature cars built with "speed contests" in mind, with four that’d require trailers to take them home after a day of play and two that could be driven to, in and from a day at a drag strip—or road course—provided you kept the shiny side up (and left some "meat" on the tires).

On any given year, there are a number of awesome concept car debuts. Many of these cars are the most interesting, exciting stars of major auto shows. Sometimes, they go on to limited-run or full-blown production. Many times they never make it past the concept stage and are retired to the annals of automotive history.

The past few years, we've had a pretty good run of concept cars being green-lighted. Intriguing, cutting edge concepts like the Jaguar C-X75, Porsche 918 Spyder, and Lamborghini Sesto Elemento have all been approved for limited production, and other exciting concepts like the Lotus Esprit were designed to preview upcoming production models.

But we aren't always so lucky. Some sexy, high-performing concepts are left to be forgotten and mentioned only in passing every year or two in auto news stories.

One artist decided that one concept deserved to be more than just a forgotten relic of once edgy design and technology. Since Ford wouldn't build it, he's doing it himself.

As I mentioned in my companion article, things at the Sotheby’s Australia’s Oct. 13-17 “Important Collectors’ Motor Cars” event in Sydney are a little bit different from what most of you are used to, in keeping with the usual way of doing business for this “largest Australian-owned, internationally operated fine art auction house”.

Put simply it’s a “sealed-bid” event wherein bidders “tender” (submit) their maximum offer on each desired lot directly to the auction house which then tallies the entries and notifies the “winner.” In fact, there is no actual auction “event,” and apart from several available “preview” days, there is no “in-person” component to the sale at all. [See my feature on the public tender process itself HERE for more info.]

Though if you think the process is strange, wait until you get a load of the very varied vehicles on offer....

The worst news we've heard today: Nissan built a hardcore, sport version of the awkward Juke crossover. The best news we've heard today: "the car is not for production." The Juke R is merely a concept that Nissan designed to test the public reaction to a sported-out Juke.

While the sporty body kit and rear spoiler make the Juke look way more odd (something we didn't necessarily believe was possible), the one thing we can't argue with is the massive power upgrade. The Juke R trades its 188-hp 1.6-liter four-cylinder for a 530-hp twin-turbo V-6 popped out from under the hood of the GT-R. I'm not sure if a crossover ever really needed Godzilla power, but it sure is a beefy upgrade.

Next year, Ferrari will unveil two new cars: a replacement for the 599 GTB, Ferrari's current coupe flagship, and an all-new Enzo. For Ferrari fans, 2012 will be a banner year. But for the 599 and its successor, it will be a bit bittersweet because they'll lose the flagship role to the more exotic Enzo successor.

Well, the 599 GTB is going out with more than a whimper. The car recently took its frustration out on one of the Enzo's predecessors: the F40. The two cars battled it out in what Ferrari calls a "fictional race." Looks plenty real to us.

Uber fandom is a serious business, and the folks over at the official Star Wars blog take no exception. Yet, few cult-classic franchises exist which garner as much love and controversy from the public-at-large as Star Wars. After revolutionizing the filmmaking process, changing the perception of sci-fi space epics, and staying in the spotlight decades later, Star Wars remains a series worthy of high honor. The devout writers on the official blog have been diligently searching for a very particular 1977 Celica Liftback GT since the mid 1990s. Just recently they released yet another public service announcement that the search continues, that this Celica must be found.

They’re ardently seeking the whereabouts of the first officially sanctioned Star Wars custom car, which was awarded in some kind of promotion-type sweepstakes several months after A New Hope hit the open market.

Hi. As a member of the generation called “X” I’ve been subjected to the above style of advertisement slogan for years now. Recently, however, I noticed that it had finally died down to a low roar. But then Toyota had to go and mess it all up with their new TACOMA EXTREME!

“To showcase the performance capabilities and aftermarket potential of its innovative three-door coupe, Hyundai has teamed up with ARK Performance to transform Veloster into a sleek and sporty rally car.”

Finally a car company comes out with a press release that doesn’t require distilling and translating and—as I’ve heard Brits say—“mucking about.”

I don’t usually “phone in” my articles, but, as it turns out, those nice folks at the Car Company Nobody Saw Coming pretty much did my work for me. It continues…